Girlfriend diagnosed with diverticulitis two days ago, admitted into hospital for IV antibiotics, hopefully being released this afternoon.
Still awaiting discharge instructions, but anticipating she'll be on a low-residue, liquid only diet for a week.
Looking for ideas/recipes on soups/juice/smoothies to prepare for her so it's not the same old chicken broth and orange juice every day.
She may be advised to limit dairy intake (milk/yogurt) to under 2 cups a day.posted by de void to Health & Fitness (9 answers total) 2 users marked this as a favorite

It would be great if you could make some real chicken or beef broth. It's far, far tastier than the canned or boxed stuff. It seems much more like real food, even if it is only liquid.posted by Ery at 10:51 AM on May 7, 2010

I was going to come in and talk about the things we found for my daughter when she broke her jaw, but most of them were milk-based - all kinds of yogurts, milkshakes, meal replacement and protien drinks (look in the diet/healthfood section of the store).

I hate to say it, but for diverticulitis it looks like broth and juice is it, with the occasional popsicle thrown it.

You might look at the soup aisle in the store and see if there are additional flavors that would work - tomato, mushroom, the oriental flavors that come in Ramen packages. But ask about allowed salt content, since most of these will be very high.posted by CathyG at 11:02 AM on May 7, 2010 [1 favorite]

When my GF could only consume clear fluids for a couple days earlier this year, I made a bunch of savory broths. It was the variety, more than anything else, that got her through it.

--Veggie stock (roast them first for an extra savory flavor; include roasted roma tomatoes -- but strain well, obviously)
--Homemade chicken stock
--Mushroom stock (buy a pound of button mushrooms, then add 2-3 of a few different kinds of dried mushrooms for depth of flavor; cover with water and cook for 1 hour)
--Thai stock (make a good chicken stock, then add lots of garlic, ginger, lemongrass, and kaffir lime leaf; strain)posted by mudpuppie at 11:41 AM on May 7, 2010 [2 favorites]

Forgot to mention, you should strain all of these through a coffee filter before serving. Line a small-mesh colander with a coffee filter to get out the small particles. Don't just rely on a kitchen strainer.posted by mudpuppie at 11:43 AM on May 7, 2010

I had diverticulitis last November. Just stick with the Mayo recommendations. She will live thru the boredom of the clear liquid week and return to a normal (albeit higher-in-fiber) diet in short order. No reason to mess around with diverticulitis trying to be entertaining or foodie about it. Most likely she's not gonna care. She's gonna want to rest and hope to recover. Period. Diverticulitis sucks; hurts lots, comes with fever, runs, all sorts of discomfort. And there's no going back and lots of scary consequences for any serious recurrence. A lifetime of care and caution ahead from all I've been led to believe. The clear liquid diet's not that big a deal. The rest (as both subject and predicate) is.posted by RockyChrysler at 12:12 PM on May 7, 2010

Seconding RockyChrysler. Don't mess around with it. Essentially, repeated bouts with diverticulutis is why my dad passed away last summer. Or, more accurately, his refusal to follow the doctors recommendation about a diet that wouldn't cause more problems. It's a pretty nasty ailment, and if you're not careful, it just gets worse. Follow the doctor's orders, and do your best to help your girlfriend adjust to the diet the doctor recommends to prevent any recurrence.posted by Ghidorah at 3:57 PM on May 7, 2010

One thing to be aware of with smoothies is that the little tiny seeds in some berries are very hard on struggling system.

Seconding those who say to stick to the prescribed diet to the letter, no matter how boring it is. My dad has been dealing with diverticulitis for as long as I can remember, and has had many hospital stays and 2 major surgeries (removing perforated portions of intestine) because of it.

It does kind of sound like what a lot of people are describing are clear liquid diets (which my dad has been put on while hospitalized and during severe attacks) but you mention a low residue diet. The low residue diets are more commonly what my dad has been put on while recovering from an attack at home. Often on a low-residue diet, when he's back to eating solid foods, his sort of "comfort" foods are pudding, vanilla yogurt, scrambled eggs, tuna salad (mayo & tuna, no celery or other veg) on a low-fiber bread or cracker, and stuff like that.

Also, after she recovers, she may be put on a high fiber diet, but it's important for her to become aware of foods that trigger attacks. For my dad, he cannot eat popcorn or he WILL end up in the hospital. Same with anything with seeds (raspberries, some jams/pies/cookies) or skins (apple skins, cranberry skins in whole-berry cranberry sauce), etc.

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